Pure joy in their maneuvers
(am I allowed to project happiness onto a bird?)

barn swallows in busy little clusters
wheeling, arcing, flipping up & diving downward

Rio Grande almost drowning island of Taos willows below the single-lane bridge

Mayflies hatched 2 weeks ago;
trout bellies full from all that feeding.
Larry says the fly-casters are out of luck.
What fish needs a bug on a hook?

The wild plums have dropped all their blossoms;
crab apple next door is a glorious blood red.

Were windows open,
the boat-strapped cars & barking dogs across the river,
they would seem all
that much closer.

Eero Ruuttila